Eugeniu Neamtu, 59, has been found guilty of murder after fatally stabbing his 63-year-old flatmate, Gheorghe Trica, in their northeast London home on February 20. The attack bore striking similarities to a previous murder Neamtu committed in Romania.
During the incident at their Walthamstow flat, an argument about money preceded the fatal stabbing. Witnesses reported hearing Mr. Trica say, "Give me back those £5," followed by Neamtu's response, "F**k off, I don't have any to give you, leave me." Shortly after, Mr. Trica was discovered on a communal balcony with a single stab wound to the chest. Paramedics and police attempted to save him, but he died at the scene. Neighbors identified Neamtu, who was seen discarding an object over the balcony, which was later recovered as a black-handled steak knife. Neamtu himself called emergency services, stating, "There was an incident here and a person is injured. There was an altercation, a man was cut, and I am the perpetrator."
Neamtu's defense claimed that Mr. Trica had threatened him, pushed him down the stairs, and made throat-slitting gestures, asserting that he picked up the knife only to scare his flatmate and stabbed him in self-defense. However, the prosecution highlighted the striking parallels with a prior conviction in Romania.
In August 2006, Neamtu fatally stabbed his housemate, Adrian Vas, during a dispute over money and property work. Both men had been drinking plum brandy when the altercation escalated. Neamtu initially told Romanian authorities that he acted in self-defense during a fight. The Romanian court rejected this claim, and Neamtu was convicted of murder in May 2007.
The prosecution argued that the similarities between the two incidents were significant: both involved a drunken argument with an associate over money, Neamtu used a knife from within the home, the victim was stabbed in the chest, and Neamtu claimed self-defense in both cases. The court allowed some details of the prior conviction to be presented to the jury, focusing on the pattern of behavior rather than the full consequences of the first victim's death.
Neamtu was released from prison in Romania in 2023 and moved to London, where he committed the recent offense approximately three years later. He denied murder during the trial at the Old Bailey and declined to give evidence. The jury deliberated for three hours before returning a guilty verdict. Sentencing is scheduled for Friday, August 21.